Living the Nightmare
by PeggsterLover
Summary: You see their lifeless, broken bodies lying before you. Your best friends... Gone. Now, you are completely alone. Where do you go from here?


_Short one shot that hit me today. Hope it's ok for you wonderful readers._

_Enjoy!_

_And nope, still don't own 'em :(_

o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o

Benji's head was pounding and his ears were ringing. His vision was blurry and for a few moments, the entire world appeared to be red. Blinking rapidly, his sight began to blur and he soon realised that the crimson stains were dripping from somewhere on his brow. He was sure he let out a vocal groan, however the blood rushing past his ears and the constant buzzing made it unclear whether he really did. He tried to sit up but the second he moved, he felt the tugging on his right arm, causing him to scream in agony.

Yes. That was definitely a scream.

Breathing heavily, each breath letting out a small whimper of pain, he glanced down and saw the beam that was sticking into his bicep, pinning him to the uneven surface beneath. Lifting his left arm, which was thankfully free, he reached over and quickly tugged, pulling the metal out. Blood began to spurt from the gaping hole in his arm so he clamped his hand down over the wound, instantly feeling the liquid oozing through his fingers nonstop like a running tap. He let out a cough as dust moved about him, catching in his throat and scratching the insides.

"Jane!" he cried. "Ethan! Brandt!"

"B-Benji?" a weak response came and he instantly recognised the voice.

"Ethan, where are you?"

"I dunno, but I can't move." Ethan's voice was shaky and it sounded like he was badly hurt. "Are you ok?"

"I'm fine." Benji lied, finally moving into a sitting position. "I'm coming to find you, ok?" He didn't wait for a response as he slowly got to his feet, letting out a cry of pain as he put weight on what felt to be a severely sprained ankle.

"Benji?!" Ethan yelled out to him.

"It's ok. I'm ok…" The tech clenched his teeth together as he began to limp across the rubble. He wasn't even sure when things had gone wrong, but the last thing he remembered was Ethan's panicked "Abort" before there was a blinding light and a horrific pain left him in darkness. The light in the area was dim, but he could just make out where he was going as he stumbled over debris and fallen concrete. At one point, his ankle gave out underneath him and he collapsed, his knees landing painfully on the ragged surface however his upper body landed on something far softer.

"Ethan?" he asked, wondering if he'd landed on his friend.

"Yeah?" The response much further away than it should have been so Benji struggled to reach his knees before looking down.

"Oh my god…" he whispered, staring at Jane's motionless form. He made to move towards her head, but when he saw the thick piece of metal impaled in her back, he felt physically sick. "Jane?" He crawled up her body and reached out a shaking hand to her neck. His stomach then dropped and his eyes welled up. "Jane…" At that point, he was glad that her long brown locks were covering her face as he couldn't bear to look at her face knowing that she was gone.

"Benji? What is it?" Ethan asked from afar, his voice full of concern.

"It's Jane…" he tried to hold back a sob. "She's dead…" Silence was the response and from the tiny hitch in the older agent's breath, he understood that Ethan was fighting back the emotions.

"Benji, come over here. Please." At Ethan's order, he raised himself back to his feet and began to move once more. He moved on shaky legs as he made his way to the source of his friend's voice, but stopped when something else caught his eye. "Benji?"

He gazed down at Brandt. The analyst lay a few feet away from him, his body splayed out and broken as his damaged head lay in a large pool of blood. It was clear where the blood was coming from; the sight made Benji's stomach turn and he couldn't stop himself keeling over, emptying the contents of his stomach.

"Benji!" Ethan cried out, his voice cracking as he did. "What's wrong?"

"I… Ethan… It's…" he couldn't get the words out. He had just lost two of his best friends. Blinking back the tears, he turned his eyes away from Brandt's body to continue on his path to Ethan. Several choked out sobs escaped his lips as he crossed what was left of the room. He ran a hand over his eyes in an attempt to wipe away the tears however all that did was smudge blood from his head injury. The red liquid mixed with the sweat that layered his brow and ran into his eyes, making it difficult to see, but he soon spotted Ethan through his hazy vision. "Ethan?"

"Benji…" The tech followed his friend's voice for the last few steps and fell to his knees, ignoring the burst of pain that shot through his entire body. He saw Ethan lying underneath a large slab of fallen concrete and couldn't hold onto his tears any more. "Benji, what is it?"

"Brandt… He's gone…" His tears fell onto Ethan's trembling skin and the older agent held out a weak hand. Benji grasped it in his own and tried to control his breathing.

"We're gonna make it, Benj…" Ethan's voice was tired and fragile as he proceeded to cough erratically. Benji tried to nod, but he could see how frail his friend was and his stomach twisted with the realisation that he would soon be alone. Inhaling deeply through his nose, he bit his lip to the point where he felt his teeth sink through the flesh and he squeezed his eyes shut, trying to avoid thinking of how limp Ethan's hand suddenly felt in his own. He was too scared to open his eyes, worried of what he would see, but he decided to be strong. As his eyelids fluttered back open, he saw him. The leader was completely still yet his eyes stayed open, staring sightlessly at what remained of the ceiling. Benji's breathing picked up and he lifted Ethan's hand to his head, resting his forehead against it as he let his tears fall. His three best friends were gone; what was he to do now?

Ethan's hand slipped from his own and despite his attempts to keep hold of it, he felt his body weakening and he fell back onto the rubble behind him. The back of his head hit the edge of a jagged slab and his vision blurred at a rapid pace. Nausea crawled from his stomach and his sight darkened from the edges. He knew it wouldn't be long before he saw his friends again. At least he wouldn't have to be alone.

o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o

"Benjamin?"

Sounds reached Benji's ears, drifting in and out.

In and out.

In and out…

"Benjamin? Can you hear me, son?" It sounded like a man was talking to him, but he didn't recognise the voice. Soon, the sounds left once more and his senses slipped away.

o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o

When the swirling sensation of consciousness returned once more, Benji could hear beeping. Voices merged around him and his head began to hurt more than it already did. Various medical terms stood out through the rush of sound.

"Pulse is…"

"Severe bleeding in the abdominal…"

"Ankle needs to be…"

"Benjamin?"

Before he realised that the last sound was his name, unconsciousness took him once more.

o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o

"Benjamin, can you hear me?" The man's voice drifted through Benji's semi-conscious thoughts and only one word could escape the tech's lips.

"Ethan…" His hearing was still off, however he was certain his voice was no more than a hoarse whisper.

"Benjamin, your friend is…"

Benji was unable to hold onto reality and he fell.

o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o

Benji finally opened his eyes and squinted against the bright light in the room. He felt the bandage around his arm from where the metal had been impaled and his head seemed to be patched up too. His leg was raised, allowing his sprained ankle to recover, however he could also feel some gauze wrapped around his stomach. He did not remember any injury there. Throwing off the covers, he realised quickly that he should not have moved that fast and let out a small groan of pain.

"Be careful." A voice sliced through the silence in the room and Benji glanced up to see a figure sitting opposite him. "Don't want you to pull the stitches. They had to open you up to stop the bleeding."

"Ethan?" His friend looked as pale as would be expected, the cuts on his face emphasised by the lightness of his skin. Benji lay back on the bed and closed his eyes, hoping that once he reopened them, the shade of his friend would be gone.

"Are you ok?" Ethan asked, the voice seeming far clearer than Benji would have thought it would. "You've been out for almost three days. We were starting to worry about you." Benji's eyes shot open and he looked back to where his friend was still sitting.

"We?" Benji's voice trembled.

"Yeah." Ethan stated, matter-of-factly as he proceeded to move himself around the bed in a wheelchair. "Brandt and Jane wanted to see you, but their injuries were a bit worse so the doctor said only I could move for the time being. But I'm sure they'll be in as soon as they can."

"W-what?" Benji couldn't quite grasp what he was hearing. "You… you died…"

"I died?" Ethan furrowed his brow. "Benji, I don't know what you're on about. After the explosion I crawled over to find you but you just wouldn't wake up. I thought I'd lost you."

"But, I saw you. And Jane and Brandt… you were all gone and I couldn't save you…" Benji felt the lump in his throat rising, hoping that this was actually reality and not just some cruel dream.

"Benji, we're all here. We all made it." Ethan offered a soft smile, reaching out to gently squeeze Benji's hand before dropping it back to his lap. "Granted, we're a bit worse for wear, but we all got out of there." Benji stared at his friend, wide eyed and taking shaky breaths as he tried to digest what he was hearing.

"We… we made it?" Benji asked, a level of vulnerability in his voice that shocked even Ethan. Whatever Benji had seen when he was unconscious had clearly left him haunted.

"Yeah, Benj." Ethan gave another smile, reassuring him that it was ok. "We did."

o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o

_And there you have it! I'm really hoping I had you guys fooled for at least a little bit… but I can be quite predictable… hope you liked it anyway!_

_Much love x_


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